Bayern go 10 points clear as rivals crash
Bayern Munich went 10 points clear in the Bundesliga on Saturday as Robert Lewandowski netted twice in their 3-0 home win against Eintracht Frankfurt as their main rivals lost. Bayern have scored 28 goals in their last six games, with Lewandowski claiming 10 of them, as coach Carlo Ancelotti remains on course to steer Bayern to a fifth straight German league title in his first season. The German giants are also well-placed to complete a treble of Champions League, Bundesliga and German Cup titles. It is nearly four months since Bayern's last defeat when Rostov beat them 3-2 in the Champions League on November 23. Bayern's iron-grip on the Bundesliga tightened as rivals RB Leipzig and Borussia Dortmund both lost. "That was a good day for us, we put in a good result and things went well for us elsewhere," said Ancelotti. "We now have a good advantage and must stay focused." Lewandowski put Bayern ahead at the Allianz Arena on 38 minutes by netting Thomas Mueller's final pass -- the tenth league assist this season from Germany star's who is struggling to score. Douglas Costa added Bayern's second three minutes later when he smashed home David Alaba's cross. Lewandowski scored his 33rd goal this season -- his 21st in the league -- by slotting home from a tight angle after the break. Germany defender Jerome Boateng came on for the last 25 minutes for his first appearance since shoulder surgery in December. In Leipzig, second-placed RB crashed 1-0 at home to Wolfsburg as Germany's Mario Gomez scored the winner. Yunus Malli put Daniel Didavi in behind RB's defence to square for Gomez, who buried his shot in the roof of the net on nine minutes to give new coach Andries Jonker his first win. "We could have taken a big step forward, but it's not so easy at the top of the table," said RB coach Ralph Hasenhuettl. "The expectation (on the team) is enormous, we made a lot of bad decisions on the pitch and didn't deserve any points." Having started their first Bundesliga season with a record 13-match unbeaten run, Leipzig have NOW picked up just seven points in their last six games. Dortmund coach Thomas Tuchel rotated after Wednesday's 4-0 win at home to Benfica as Borussia suffered a Champions League hangover with a 2-1 defeat at Hertha Berlin. "The result if very annoying, but I found the performance okay," said Tuchel. "We had the right mentality, attitude and will, but we lacked effectiveness and precision." Borussia's Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored for the eighth time in four games to remain the league's top-scorer -- one ahead of Lewandowski -- with 22 goals, but could not prevent defeat. Salomon Kalou had given Hertha an early lead at the Olympic Stadium before Aubameyang netted with his second touch in a move orchestrated by Japan's Shinji Kagawa. But dead-ball specialist Marvin Plattenhardt smashed home a free kick for Hertha's winner on 71 minutes to give Berlin only their third win in seven games Bottom side Darmstadt are 11 points from safety despite their 2-1 home win with 10 men against Mainz thanks to first-half goals from Germany international Sidney Sam and captain Aytac Sulu. Darmstadt played the last 30 minutes a man down after Mario Vrancic's dismissal for a second booking. Hoffenheim remain fourth after their 1-1 draw at Freiburg as Maximilian Philipp's penalty was cancelled out by Andrej Kramaric. Later, Anthony Modeste netted twice in mid-table Cologne's 2-2 draw at relegation-threatened Ingolstadt to lift the Frenchman's tally up to 19 league goals.
